Zion Lutheran Church

09/05/2026

Trinity - Week 13 - Saturday

LESSON: PHILIPPIANS 2:1‒4 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit, and having one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty conceit, but in humility consider one another better than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look carefully not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

“And who is my neighbor?”. . . “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10:29, 37

The lawyer does not ask, “Who is my God?” It seems that he feels that he owes God nothing. As far as God is concerned, he is quite sure that there is nothing amiss. Nor is he conscious of any shortcomings as far as his neighbor is concerned. But he still comes up with the question, “And who is my neighbor?”
The Lord answered him by telling him a parable which shows that we are all neighbors one of another, both the man who does a good deed to another man, and the man who needs that act of kindness. In this parable, however, Christ more particularly presents the man who does an act of kindness to another as a neighbor. But Scripture uses the term “neighbor” in both senses: it calls the man who does the act of kindness a neighbor, and at times it speaks of the recipient of such an act as a neighbor.
From this parable Jesus draws the conclusion, “Go and do likewise.” This lawyer had not only sinned against God but also against his neighbor. He failed not only in his love to God but also in his love to his neighbor. He did not do good to his neighbor. We can imagine how the poor man began to sweat at the suggestion that there was nothing but evil in him from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. How could he have been so remiss, this highly learned and pious man?
This is how he came to overlook important duties: he led a pharisaical, dissembling, hypocritical life. In this sort of life he never stooped to consider the interests or welfare of his neighbor. He never even thought of helping others with his life. He thought only of his personal honor and glory before his fellowmen, and so he always kept gaping at heaven. He led the very opposite of a God-pleasing life. Martin Luther

PRAYER: Grant us Your grace, heavenly Father, that we always keep our priorities in correct perspective, loving You with a pure heart and loving our neighbor as ourselves, in Christ’s name and to His glory. Amen.

08/28/2026

Prayers for the flood victims in Nepal.

08/26/2026

https://youtu.be/O-TUCbWYjEE?si=cAigG6f-BvZASEp1

What happens to a culture when “my choice” becomes its highest mora...

08/26/2026

Trinity - Week 12 - Wednesday

LESSON: MATTHEW 9:18‒22
He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Luke 7:50

This Gospel (Mark 7:31‒37) suggests discussion on the part played by another’s faith in our salvation. These men brought the deaf man to Jesus as a fruit of their faith in Jesus. The deaf man made no contribution at all; he played an entirely passive role.

We should note at the outset that it is quite impossible to be saved by another man’s faith in the sense that the other man does the believing for you and in your place. But it may well happen that through another man’s faith, you yourself come to personal faith. In a similar way, the works of another man can help me or influence me to perform works of my own. Those people are lying who claim that we can be saved through the works and faith of others, whether we have personal faith for ourselves or not. It is not so! Unless you derive a personal faith for yourself from God’s goodness and mercy, you cannot be saved.

This is how the case stands. If you do not have your own personal faith, neither the faith nor work of another man will help you, not even Christ who is a Savior for the whole world. His goodness and His help avails you nothing unless you yourself have faith in Him, and are thereby enlightened. Therefore, be on your guard against anyone who directs you for help to another’s faith. Tell such a would-be helper, “If you want to serve me with your works, make an approach to God and say to Him, ‘Dear heavenly Father, through Your grace I have come to faith, therefore I beseech You, my God, give this poor man faith also.’ This could help me, but it is impossible for you to give me your own faith. And even if you could do so, it would help me not at all.” Luther

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, of all the many gifts which You have bestowed upon us in Your grace and mercy, none is more important to us than the gift of faith. Make our faith strong and a powerful source of good works, through Your holy Gospel and for Christ’s sake. Amen.

08/18/2026

Trinity - Week 11 - Tuesday
LESSON: 2 CORINTHIANS 4:13‒15
“I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.” Luke 18:14

The tax collector’s faith certainly proves itself by its fruits. How do we explain Christ’s statement here that he “went down to his house justified rather than the other”? We have suggested that this tax collector was justified before the happenings recorded in this Gospel and before he beat upon his breast as here reported. What does Christ mean here, then, with the statement that “he went down to his house justified”?
This refers to something I have frequently stressed previously: if faith is as it should be, it will break out and produce fruit. If the tree is green and good, there is no coming to a standstill; it must sprout and produce fruit and leaves. Nature sees to this. I do not have to command the tree and say, “Listen to me, tree, produce apples!” If the tree is there and it is a good tree, fruit comes of its own accord. If true faith exists anywhere, works must follow.
If I confess myself to be a sinner, it follows that I must also say, “Dear God, I am a rogue; make me godly!” So also the tax collector here. He does not hold back, but speaks out quite freely. He is not afraid of disgracing himself before other people. He must come out with his faith, saying, “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” It is as though he meant to say, “Now I see that all is shattered for me; I am a rogue and acknowledge my sin. There is nothing else for me now but to believe in God and cling to His mercy, to implore His grace; otherwise I am ruined.”
In this way faith casts itself upon God. It breaks forth and establishes itself through works. When that happens in a man, I can recognize him as a believer and so can others. Martin Luther

PRAYER: When You bring men to true faith, heavenly Father, You also empower them to prove their faith in their lives. Make our faith such a power in our lives that all men will know that we are Your children and glorify Your holy name, in and through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

08/16/2026

Trinity - Week 11 - Sunday
LESSON: LUKE 18:9‒14
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.” Luke 18:10

You have already heard that before any man can do what is good and pleasing in God’s sight he must already be a pious man, that is, he must be accounted as justified and righteous before God by faith in Christ. At all times it remains universally true that a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and, contrariwise, that a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. If a man is to do what is good, he must be good beforehand. So also here. The tax collector beats his breast, and this act may be regarded as a mark of the faith he already had in his heart.
This took place and was recorded so that we should really open our eyes and not judge people merely by outward appearances. We must try to discover what was in the heart of these two men and not simply form a judgement according to works. If the heart is godly, all is godly. If this tax collector is judged by works, you soon come to a false conclusion. It appears that in him there is nothing but sin. Likewise, when I judge the hypocritical Pharisee here according to works, I also finish up with a wrong conclusion. He stands in the holy place, makes a fine prayer, praises and thanks God with impressive works, fasts, gives tithes, and harms no one. Everything about this man glitters. His standards find universal approval.
It is not easy to reject the testimony of such an honorable, virtuous life. Who would venture to assert that fasting is not good, that praising God and rendering to every man his due is something evil? When I look at a priest, monk, or nun, I regard them as godly. Who can gainsay me? But if I am to determine that this man is evil and that man godly, I must look into their hearts. This I cannot do. Martin Luther

PRAYER: We know that it is quite useless, heavenly Father, to play the role of a hypocrite, because You can always look into our hearts and judge us accordingly. Purify our hearts from all base motives, that the services we render You may truly please You and benefit our neighbor, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

07/24/2026

Trinity - Week 7 - Friday
LESSON: ROMANS 12:1-8
Christ ... suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:21

In the Gospels, we are taught both faith and love. Christ is portrayed to us from two viewpoints: from the viewpoint of faith, that we should repose our whole faith and trust in Him and not indulge in anxious care and worry; and from the viewpoint of love. Just as He does to us in His concern for us, feeding us, giving us drink, and clothing us out of free love alone—and not just to be useful to us or as a reward for our merits—so also, we should do good freely to our neighbors, so that, just as He is Christ for us, we should also be Christ for them.
Here we see that many of the works performed in times past by the religious are vain and even damned. For they were not performed in the interests of the neighbor, but for the sole reason of piling up personal merits before God.
True Christian works must never be done with any ulterior motive; they must always be quite free, so that they redound to our neighbor’s welfare and are a completely free gift to him. They are, so to say, thrown into a common pool from which anyone can draw.
This is what Christ Himself did. He threw all His benefits into a common pool. He gave His doctrine, Word, and life to the congregation as His free gift to them. Blessed are those who accept this gift of Christ with thanksgiving. Martin Luther

PRAYER: Shine in our darkened hearts and lives with Your Holy Spirit, Lord Jesus, that we may learn to love others as You have loved us, and that, as You are Christ for us, we may also be Christ for them. Grant us this for Your mercy, truth, and love’s sake. Amen.

07/20/2026

07/18/2026

Trinity - Week 6 - Saturday. LESSON: ROMANS 8:1-9

“Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Matthew 5:17

What are we to learn from Christ’s interpretation of the Law in His Sermon on the Mount? First, you should learn that if you were to be judged by your obedience to the Law, you would have to be condemned as a child of sin and the devil. From this lost condition you cannot possibly rescue yourself by your own resources. You have no alternative but to seek refuge in God and beseech Him to change you. Otherwise, all is lost, and you are ruined.

Therefore, take hold of God’s Word and promises that He is willing to change you, and this will prove itself a source of great help to you. Say to God, “See here, my God, you have set up Christ, your beloved Son, as an example for me. You want me to live as He did. I cannot do this. Change me, dear God, and grant me your peace.”

God comes to our assistance and says, “Because you acknowledge your need of help and seek grace from Me, I will change you and make a new man of you. And though you are not perfect like Christ, as you should be, My Son’s life and perfection shall come to your assistance.” There must always be something to humble us and inspire us with healthy fear.

This is real comfort—depending not on our own ability but on the fact that we have a gracious God who forgives us and on our faith in Christ, not on our own “worthiness.” This also purifies us from day to day, and, wherever there is something still lacking, we trust in Christ to provide us with adequate consolation. This is also the chief thrust of this particular Gospel (Matthew 5:20-26).
Martin Luther

PRAYER: Thanks be to you, Lord Jesus Christ, for the hope of salvation which You have provided in the perfect fulfillment of Your heavenly Father’s Law for us, which you offer us in Your Gospel of salvation, for Your mercy and truth’s sake. Amen.

07/04/2026

Trinity - Week 4 - Saturday [ Blessed 250 ] LESSON: MATTHEW 7:1-5
“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned.” Luke 6:37
Jesus is speaking here of uncharitable judging and condemnation, forming a good or bad opinion about something that cannot really be seen from the outside but is a judgement that only God can make. It can happen that you see your neighbor sinning on the one day, and God accepts him on the next day. You can also put on a very pious front and blot out all remembrance of your own sins.
Christ has forbidden judging, for there can be no love or unity where such judging and condemning is current among men. To judge or condemn another man is nothing else but having a log in one’s eye such as all hypocrites have in their eyes. Those who have the idea that their piety exceeds that of other men always find something wrong with their brethren. No matter what their brethren do, they find fault with it, but they cannot see their own sins.
If you see nothing but sin in others, without ever noticing the log in your own eye, you are falling under the judgement of God. You, who are so ready to judge and condemn another man, are a greater sinner before God than the worst scoundrel and the worst harlot, of whom God alone knows who is saved or condemned.
All sin that other men commit is as nothing when compared with the sin that you commit with your uncharitable judgement of others. Martin Luther

PRAYER: To you and to no one else, O God, belongs all judgment and condemnation. Keep us always aware of this basic fact whenever we are tempted to judge and condemn our neighbor in defiance of the love that we should always manifest to him, in and through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.